neighbors
by achille
Summary: It all started one lunch break when Kimi, her best friend, asked, "Have you noticed that none of the basketball players at our school have any leg hair?" Kuroko x OC.


**CHAPTER ONE**  
Leg hair

* * *

"Have you noticed," Kimi says one day during their lunch break, "That none of the basketball players at our school have any leg hair?"

It was a chilly fall afternoon. The two of them were sitting in the back of their classroom. Only a few of their classmates were hanging around, the majority of them preferred eating outside or elsewhere in the school. The only guys in the classroom were playing cards in the front of the classroom, while the only other girls in the classroom sat across from Toyo and Kimi. They were indulging in today's gossip. From what they were whispering loudly and excitedly about, it seemed that a popular upper-classmate had broken up with his girlfriend of two-years.

Toyo glances up at her from her meal. "What are you talking about, Kimi?"

"They have, like, absolutely no leg hair," she repeats. She adjusts her thick-rimmed glasses. "I went to see them practice yesterday with Chi-chan. I could not stop looking at their legs! There was no leg hair on it whatsoever! It was the weirdest thing!"

"I don't believe you," Toyo says. At the look in Kimi's eye, she frowns. She was going to do something. Something Toyo would not to be a part of, but would be forced to do anyway.

"Yo, Mami-chan! Suki-chan! Yume-chan!" Kimi cries out suddenly. The girls seated across from them all look at her with curious eyes. "Isn't it true the people from the basketball club have no leg hair?"

They all stare at her. After a few seconds, Mami gasps. "Oh my god!" she cries. "You're right! They don't have any leg hair!"

"No, no, I'm pretty sure they do," Suki says.

"No, no Su-chan, Kimi's right," Yume counters. "They don't have any. I was talking to Hiroshi about it yesterday."

"Hah? What's this about leg hair?" Yamamoto asks, setting his cards down. His group of friends look at them expectantly, curiosity piqued.

"They guys from basketball club," Mami explains, "They don't have any leg hair!"

"I'm pretty sure they do!" Suki says.

"Yeah," Toyo agrees.

"I'm with Suki-san and Toyo-san," Tsubasa says. He sets his cards down on the table, too. "I mean, that's just too weird. Why wouldn't they have any leg hair? Do they do annual group shaves or something?"

"No, no," Ken, who sits next to Tsubasa, says. He gathers the cards on the table and shuffles them into their packet. "They don't have any leg hair. Trust me."

The small group of classmates engage in a heated debate about whether or not the members of the basketball club did have any leg hair. Toyo tries her best to tell them to forget about it and that it was nothing, or to simply agree to disagree. Unfortunately, no one was listening.

Yamamoto leaps onto his desk and requests for everyone to be silent. Toyo groans. She didn't like where this was going. "Since we can't seem to agree," he says with a mischievous grin, "We'll have to find the basketball team and see their legs!"

Toyo's eye twitches at the sight of her classmates excitedly agreeing to Yamamoto's plan. She should have kept her mouth shut instead of challenging Kimi. Now they were going to force her into doing something weird.

* * *

"OK," Yamamoto says. "We'll split up into pairs and first person to get a picture of one of the member's legs is the winner."

"We should make this more interesting!" Kimi suggests, a glint her eye. Toyo hates that glint. The last time she saw that glint, she was singing along to old-school Japanese hip-hop songs with elderly women in a retirement home. "There has to be repercussions for the people that are wrong!"

"I don't like where this is going," Toyo says.

"Heh, that sounds pretty fun!" Mami says. "The loser has to buy the winners lunch or something?"

"At a really swanky place," Suki adds.

Toyo sighs, visibly relieved. That's pretty normal, plus she had some money to spend. Not a bad punishment.

Yume giggles. "And at the end of the lunch the losers have to do a really embarrassing dance!"

"Yeah!" Ken agrees. "In a chicken-suit!"

"I think that's going a little too far," Tsubasa says. Toyo nods in agreement. "I think lunch is sufficient."

Yume and Ken frown. "Fine," they agree.

"OK, everyone let's get into pairs," Yamamoto orders. "I call Tsubasa!"

"We're always partners," Tsubasa jokingly complains.

"Yume-chan, let's be partners," Suki says, linking arms with her.

"Mami-san?" Ken asks.

"Sure!"

"I guess I'm stuck with you then," Toyo says to Kimi.

Kimi elbows her. "You're lucky to be with someone as great as me!"

"Ow!" Toyo rubs her side.

"Ah, let's trade numbers, guys," Mami says. Once finished, they wish one another luck and part ways in search of the basketball team. Toyo really wishes she had kept her mouth shut.

"I'm an idiot," she mumbles to herself.

* * *

"Everyone's probably gone to check and see if they're all doing some lunch practice," Kimi says. "But I know for a fact that today they're taking a break."

"How do you know that?" Toyo asks.

"Chi-chan is a stalker, Toyo," Kimi says with a solemn nod. "She's stalking that Kagamine guy. She thinks he's cute or something."

Toyo winces. Chi tended to become a little bit intense in her pursuit of her ideal boyfriend."Poor guy."

"Yeah," Kimi agrees. "OK. So, my best guess is that they're eating lunch on the roof."

"Why don't we all just watch them at practice after school? They wear shorts, we'll be able to see their legs."

Kimi pouts. "There's no fun in that! Anyway, let's try the roof first."

By the time they've climbed all the stairs leading to the roof, Toyo is exhausted. She's out of breath and sweats like crazy. "N…never…" She doubles over and nearly collapses. "Never…again!"

"Drama Queen," Kimi snorts. "You should seriously start exercising more. Just join the Softball team, you'll love it! It's really fun!"

"N…never…" she manages to say. "D-Drama club!"

"Oh, right, those are on the same day as Softball practice," Kimi clicks her tongue. She holds out her hand. "Up and at 'em!"

"T…thanks," she says. She's taking in less gulps of air. "Give me a sec…I'll be fine."

"You're so cute and chubby, Toyo," Kimi says with a sigh, "But seriously, you should work out more. This is pretty pathetic."

Unlike Kimi, who was tall, lean, and muscled, Toyo was short and on the chubby side. Rather than spend her days chasing after softballs, Toyo preferred acting out or studying famous plays with her fellow Drama club members. She liked the arts — specifically, theater — better than athletics.

Kimi, on the other hand, liked anything that made her move. She loved dragging Toyo to different dance clubs and sporting events. Kimi also had two huge dogs that loved going on walks. Toyo joined them here and there, but generally preferred staying inside around to wandering about.

"I'll do it during the summer or something," Toyo mutters. "A...Anyway, are we doing this or what?"

Kimi pumps a fist in the air. "Let's do this!" She kicks the door open, surprising the occupants of the roof. She was right, the the basketball team was eating lunch there. Kimi grabs the person nearest to her, which happened to be a blue-haired boy Toyo has never seen before in her life.

"I'm sorry, I need to borrow him," Kimi tells the group. "Thank you."

She drags the surprised boy down a few flights of stairs. Toyo trails behind them. Once they are a considerable distance away from the roof, she stops and holds the boy by his shoulders. "Are you a regular on the basketball team?"

"Y…yeah."

"Why in god's name do you have blue hair?" Kimi asks. She shakes her head. "Nevermind, that isn't important. Toyo, take his picture."

Toyo fumbles for her phone, and takes a shaky picture. "Wait, sorry, that's blurry. Once second."

"What is going on?" the boy asks. "Why are you taking my picture?

"We're from the yearbook club, we need some pictures of the basketball players," Toyo says. "Ah, what is your name and number?"

"My name is Kuroko Tetsuya, I'm number eleven," he supplies automatically. Then he stares at her. "That's a lie. You aren't a part of the yearbook club."

Toyo looks dejectedly at her feet. "I know, I'm sorry, Kuroko-san."

Kimi sighs. "Toyo, you're a better liar than that," she says. She bends down and rolls up Kuroko's pant-leg. "Anyway, take a picture of his leg."

Kuroko jerks his leg away from Kimi, but Toyo's already taken the picture. "Wow, she breaths, "They really _don't _have any leg hair…"

"Thank for your time, Kuroko-san," Kimi says to him, bowing. She turns to Toyo. "Run."

The two of them bolt down the stairs without another word. They leave a confused and slightly violated Kuroko standing in the staircase with his pant-leg still rolled up. He wanders back up the stairs and into the roof where he is bombarded by his team-mates with questions about who the girl was and what she wanted. Most asked if she had confessed to him.

"She….she took a picture of my leg and then ran off," he says, a little dazed.

"_EHHHHH?!"_

* * *

"Hah, I told you I was right!" Mami gloats. With only a few minutes of lunch left, the small cluster of classmates gathered once again into their classroom, all of them staring at Toyo's cell.

"That is _so _weird," Suki murmurs. "Maybe it's just that guy?"

"Yeah," Ken agrees, "Maybe does swimming along with basketball? I hear swimmers shave their body hair."

"I'm on the swim team and I've never seen before," Yume says. "Anyway, we're right, and you guys are wrong. How does Saturday at four sound?"

"Ah, I have practice on Saturday!" Kimi cries. "Friday night? We can all go do some karaoke, too."

"That sounds like fun!" Yamamoto agrees. "Let's do it!"

Tsubasa pats Ken on the shoulder. "Bring lots of money, Ken. I'm going to eat a lot!"

"Same here, Su-chan!" Mami says with a giggle.

"Shut up," Toyo says to Kimi. She snaps her cellphone shut and puts it away.

Kimi smirks. "I didn't even say anything!"

"You eyes gave it away," Toyo grumbles.

"Well, this was a fun lunch time," Yamamoto says.

Mami nods in agreement. "By the way, how'd you guys even take this picture?"

Kimi launches into the story, with Toyo occasionally interjecting to add a few details. The lunch bell rings in the middle of the recollection of events, but Kimi still continues. The rest of the group tells their respective stories of failing to find the basketball team. Yamamoto and Tsubasa tell a particularly humorous story of confusing the basketball club for the soccer club and getting chased around the school by them.

* * *

Toyo walks home with a heavy sigh. She was so tired from today's weird antics. More importantly, she was super embarrassed. Leave it to Kimi and Yamamoto to make something as insignificant as whether or not a group of people had leg hair or not into a huge, unnecessary game.

She smiles to herself. It was fun, though. As it weird and embarrassing as it was, it was really, really fun, too.

When she reaches her apartment, a large, tired smile is on her face. The first thing she is going to do is sleep. Homework be damned. However, just as she reaches into her pocket for her key, she notices large blue eyes staring at her. It's that kid. What's-his-face. The one whose hairless leg is on her phone.

"Good evening," the boy says.

"Ah," she says, "You."

"Kuroko," the boy supplies.

"Ah yes, Kuroko-san," she says. "I knew that. Good evening."

"No, you didn't."

She smiles apologetic. "I'm a bit tired. Sorry."

"Mhm."

"I'm sorry about today! My friend, ah, wanted to test out a theory!"

"What theory is that?"

She coughs. "That no one on your team has any leg hair," she whispers quickly.

He stares at her, his eyes widening slightly. He rolls up his pant-leg and stares at his leg. "Oh."

"You_ didn't even know!?"_

"No."

"Anyway, sorry," she says. "I'll delete your picture right now."

"It's fine."

"By the way, what are you doing here?" she asks. "Visiting someone?"

He points at the apartment next to hers. "I live here."

There's a pregnant pause before she chuckles and says, "No, you don't.

"Yes, I do."

"No, no. That's not possible."

"I live here, Wanabe-san," he repeats. He seems to be getting a bit annoyed. "I've lived here all my life.

Her eyes widen. "You're lying!"

"I'm not lying."

"Prove it, then!"

He pulls out a key and unlocks the apartment. "Tetsuya, are you home?" a voice calls. It's the sound of her neighbor…Kuroko-san…

She gasps. _"NO!" _

He nods. "Yes."

"_HOW?" _

"I was born and shortly after my parents moved in here…?"

"HOW COME I'VE NEVER MET YOU BEFORE?"

"I'm the same age as you. We've been going to the same school since primary school," he says. "I greet you every morning, Wanabe-san."

She imagines a small boy always exiting his apartment in the morning at the same time as her. Always waving. Always saying, "Good morning!" but never once gets a "Good morning!" in reply. Then, one day, having that very same neighbor take a picture of his hairless leg.

Tears are brimming against her eyes. She's a horrible human being.

"Please stop imagining weird things, Wanabe-san."

"I AM SO SORRY, KUROKO-SAN!" she wails. "I-I'll repay you somehow! I won't stop until I've been forgiven for the horrible acts I have done to you!"

"No, it's alright," he tries to say, but he is ignored. Toyo is too busy thinking of all the ways she can repay him as she opens her apartment door.

"Please come in!" She pushes the door open and gestures for him to enter. "Stay over for dinner! It's the least I can do!"

"No, it's alright, I have—" but she's already dragging him into the apartment. "Wait, Wanabe-san, my door is unlocked I need to—"

"I'll repay you Kuroko-san!" she tells him as she kicks her shoes off. "I won't stop until I do!"

"Please stop, I was never mad at you," he says, but she's already wandered off into her kitchen.

He sighs.


End file.
